US MQ-9 Reaper Drone Takes Out Russian T-72 Tank in Syria

A U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drone took out a Soviet-made T-72 tank in eastern Syria on Saturday in a "self-defense" strike after pro-regime forces fired on U.S. advisers and allied Syrian fighters. Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian, head of Air Forces Central Command, acknowledged Tuesday that the battlespace in Syria is becoming increasingly contested as more operators move into the area, making response decisions ever more complicated. "... We rely upon our folks who are on the ground to make that decision, primarily the ground force commander," Harrigian told reporters from the Combined Air Operations Center at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, during a video teleconference briefing. "What happened in that particular scenario is the tank that fired was within an effective range to target our SDF and advisers on the ground, which clearly provides [the ground commander] the ability to defend him...